Holiness in jeans and sneakers

Today, October 12, the universal Church celebrates the liturgical feast of Saint Carlo Acutis, a millennial who, with a sweatshirt, jeans, and a laptop under his arm, proved that the 21st century is not too complex for God. Far from the distant, aloof, or unattainable stereotypes of sainthood, Carlo lived a normal adolescence in Milan: he played soccer, enjoyed video games, played the saxophone, and helped his friends and the most needy in his neighborhood. However, his great genius did not lie in excelling at computer science—although he programmed websites about Eucharistic miracles with astonishing skill—but in understanding that technology and modernity should be at the service of eternity.

The Eucharist: your “highway to heaven”

For Carlo, the center of gravity of each day was not digital applause or algorithm approval, but the Tabernacle. He defined the Eucharist as his “highway to heaven ,” a fast and direct route to encountering the love of all loves. He received Communion daily and dedicated moments of sincere prayer before Jesus in the Eucharist, convinced that the more frequently we receive the sacraments, the more we become like Christ.

In an age where mobile phone screens absorb our attention and fragment our souls, Carlo’s testimony speaks volumes. He didn’t flee the world; he inhabited it with a clear vision, aware that every social network, every conversation with a classmate, and every moment of leisure could become an opportunity to radiate God. As he himself often repeated with a maturity beyond his years: “Everyone is born an original, but many die as photocopies .” Carlo chose to be an unmistakable original, sealed by grace.

A smile in the face of pain and an eternal legacy

When fulminant leukemia struck in 2006, robbing her of her strength in a matter of days, she offered her suffering for the Pope and the Church, facing death with luminous peace and a perpetual smile. She left us with an indelible, constructive lesson: death is not the end of the game, but the definitive access to full communion with the Creator.

Today, as we remember him on his feast day, Saint Carlo Acutis invites us to re-examine our own priorities. He encourages us to cleanse our inner “hard drive,” to silence the sterile noise of criticism, and to ignite a passion for the sacraments and concrete acts of charity. May his intercession inspire us to be, in the midst of our families, workplaces, and daily routines, authentic digital apostles of hope.